Chapter 3: There An Old Man Inside Me – 3
Translator: McTavish
Editor: MagicFishCat
Although he said Metallurgy, it was midnight right now. There weren’t any blacksmiths whom he knew and he wouldn’t be able to get an appointment with one at this hour. [1]
However, he could try a task that fell under metallurgy, and that was sharpening the sword.
“Baek In-ha this bastard, he has some sense.”
A large envelope stood at an angle in one corner of his room, in which there was a large whetstone along with all kinds of medicine, including headache medicine. Maybe he had ripped it off the second-hand weapon store from before. [2]
Kang Shin-hyuk, who had been caressing the whetstone with his fingers, was surprised to find himself thinking that the whetstone was good enough sharpen his new sword. Perhaps this was also the effect of his past memories of the war. A bitter smile came out. Maybe to a bystander, it would look like a beginner was using a veteran’s jokes.
“But… is this really a Godslayer sword?”
-That’s right. The last sword you made in your past life, the Godslayer Sword.
“But it looks so plain…”
Kang Shin-hyuk shot back, saying that he didn’t believe the administrator’s words.
The Godslayer Sword. Yes, in his messy mind, he remembered making the sword. The memories just before Anvil’s death remained vivid. Yes, he had made it for a man named Janus. He had also removed some of the materials and made it into a small gift to give to a child named Eunah.
But in his memories, the blade wasn’t this worn or cracked.
-As a result of falling through a storm of time and space as well as crossing through numerous dimensions, even the Dragon Heart, the core of the sword, was lost. However, since it has returned to the owner’s hand, maybe it will be able to regain it’s original strength someday by reforging it with your Spirit Power.
“A storm of time and space… So, I have to forge it again.”
His skill level of Metallurgy was only F-Rank. It was only natural considering that he had never held a hammer before in his life. But to reforge the sword, which had the words ‘Godslayer’ in its name, would such a day ever come?
-You don’t have to worry. The soul remembers the technique, so if you start training in Metallurgy, your synchronization will accelerate and it won’t take long until you recover your past life’s state. Your ability to deal with spirit power should also grow together.
“Well, I’m looking forward to it.”
Now his priority of action was to develop his new strength, Spirit Power. He had no strong desire to increase the assimilation rate or to restore the memories of the past life. He just thought that he couldn’t turn away from it.
The administrator continued explaining as if he had read his mind. Also, it could be just his current mood, but the administrator sounded as if he was tempting him.
-That’s not all. Once fully synced, you’ll be able to restore your Hero Universe membership status, upgrade your login bonus and reclaim the massive amount of HP you have stored at the same time. HP is a commodity that can be obtained through outreach and heroic activities in the Hero Universe, so it will have a massive impact on your growth…
“That’s…I’m sorry, I want to forget about the hero universe right now.”
-I understand.
Of course, he had some memories of my previous life, so he roughly knew how amazing the Hero Universe was. But right now, he was too confused to even evaluate himself, so he couldn’t properly think about anything else.
In particular, the community he stayed in during the life that he didn’t know about, to rush straight into this topic was like jumping into fire with a bomb for his mind.
“So, I want to start by being able to sense myself to some extent. Connecting to the exterior can come after.”
-10HP Bonus for member who is realizing the essence of spirit power!
“Is that so?”
Laughing at the administrator’s message, Kang Shin Hyuk started the work to grasp himself, which is sharpening the blade.
Although he never learnt how to properly sharpen a blade, he didn’t have the thought of learning how to. Because he already knew the way in his instincts.
He laid a piece of towel on the floor, then set the whetstone down and whetted it with water. Sitting on his knees in front of the whetstone, he raised the Godslayer Sword that had lost its edge. [4]
“······ Hoo.”
Why was he trembling at this little stone? Taking deep breaths, he held the blade and set it an angle on a whetstone. There were no errors in his posture even though it was his first time. The movement that had been carved into the soul, after being repeated for many years came out naturally.
In the blink of an eye, Kang Shin Hyuk was not a student at Shinyoung, but a blacksmith. The transition was so natural that even he laughed.
Shiing. Shiing. Shiing.
Slowly without rushing, with precise movements, making sure there are no faults. He began to sharpen the blade of the sword.
At first, he felt a little awkward, but after mindlessly sharpening a few times, the awkwardness disappeared without a trace.
‘Focus on the sword.’
Sharpening the sword is conversing with the sword. That mindset was naturally instilled in his mind as he continued to grind on the whetstone.
That was also probably a memory from his past life. But it still belonged to him. At this moment, the feeling of discomfort about the memories of the previous life disappeared a tiny bit.
Shiing. Shiing. Shiing.
Without stopping, he continued to sharpen his blade. The repetition of such simple movements was infinitely comfortable. The sudden memories about his past life, his discomfort about his new Special Ability, the Hero Universe, disappeared as he sharpened the blade.
His mind calmed down. The other unnecessary thoughts disappeared, and only one sword remained with him in the world.
It resembled the figure of a lone blacksmith who hammered on a lump of metal in a destroyed world.
-Halo : Anvil…? Anvil, right?
At that moment, a message appeared and hindered his concentration. Kang Shin-hyuk cocked his head. What’s this?
His body wiped the whetstone and poured water again but suddenly realized while trying to interpret this phenomenon. Among the members of Hero Universe, there was a function to share messages.
‘Let’s ignore it for now.’
But, unfortunately, it was just the beginning.
-Eunah: Grandpa!?
-Eunah: It’s Grandpa! Grandpa, Grandpa!
-Tsukuyo: Anvil, I’m greatly saddened by the fact that you have neglected your wife. But your wife, after finding out that you’re alive and well, has shaken off all my sorrow and hate, so please calm your anger and reply.
-Eunah : Grandpa! Where is Grandpa!? Are you well? Are you alive? Please answer me, Grandpa!
-Janus: Anvil old maaaaaan! I thought you were really deaaaaaad!
Janus: Oh, please make me a godslayer sword again! I lost it. Make it red again! Anvil old maaaaaan!
-Eunah: Grandpa, right? ·····? Please, Grandpa. Please give me an answer ······!
-Mirang: What a surprise. Are you alive? No, wait … Is it reincarnation? What a success you’ve had to connect to Hero Universe in both of your life! No, did you… hmm, is it too unlikely? Please answer as soon as possible. I’ll wait.
-Super Ultra Galactic Fist No.1 Best-nim: Wow, it’s been a long time old man! How can you not make my gloves and go under for 18 years!
-Eunah: Heuk, Grandpaa……Answer me……
“Ah really!”
In the end, Kang Shin-hyuk stood up screaming. He couldn’t work at all. In particular, this girl, Eunah, was very burdensome!
“Administrator, please do something about this!”
-You can use the whisper blocking function and the offline camouflage function.
If such things existed, then he should’ve told them first! Kang Shin-hyuk immediately activated the two functions. The manager did what he asked, adding a word.
-It was processed. However, if you are thinking about future hero universe activities, it is a good idea to read the messages slowly and answer them one by one. The relationship you have made will be a great power.
“······ I know. I just thought it would be ruder for me to respond to them without thinking.”
Truthfully, he didn’t want to connect to the Hero Universe until the synchronization was completed, but now that this happened, he felt like he had to face the Hero Universe, and the people from Anvil’s past properly.
Honestly, it was a burden. Relationships that he built up but didn’t know! He couldn’t help but sigh when he thought of all the explaining he would have to go through about himself. Kang Shin-Hyuk turned his eyes to the sword that lay in front of his eyes. freew(e)bnovel
“I don’t know, let’s just keep sharpening.”
-As expected, your personality didn’t change.
“That’s an insult.”
-10HP bonus!
“What do you mean? Excuse me? What does that mean?”
After blocking the whispers, he created an environment where he could concentrate.
The current condition of the Godslayer Sword was so messed up that he had to not only sharpen the blade but also shake off the dirt embedded between the chips and dents. And so, after one hour of work, his sword resembled a proper sword somewhat.
-Woo Woo
How quietly he was sharpening his sword? At one point, the sword vibrated. Kang Shin-hyuk’s hands stopped. Was he mistaken? No, he wasn’t. In addition to the sword vibrating, he was able to detect the distinct will contained within it.
Gladness, longing, joy, sadness. Such complex emotions were flowing from the sword. Kang Shin-hyuk shivered and realized instinctively.
Perhaps this was spirit power. The Spirit Power inherent in him stimulated the Spirit Power in the sword, intertwining their origins into one.
Kang Shin-hyuk felt as if he could communicate to the sword with just his will, just like how it mesmerized him in the weapon store. He chose to go along with his instincts.
‘Did I make you?’
-Woo-woong
The moment Kang Shin-hyuk carefully asked a question while sharpening his blade, the sword glowed as if it were positive. It was definitely a spirit power. The anxiety and faint light shook his heart. He wanted to help this sword.
At that moment, the light that naturally escaped from his body permeated into his sword. The sword seemed to be happy again and made a slight cry.
After seeing it, Shin Hyuk Kang lost his composure very briefly, but he soon realized that his spirit power was absorbed by the sword.
‘Indeed, it is true. Is this the power to deal with it.’
He felt pure joy in his heart. Was it because he figured out a way to control spirit power, a higher form of mana? No, that wasn’t the reason. Of course, that was also a good thing, but now he was just happy to be able to help his sword struggle and regain all its strength. It was strange though the past him wouldn’t be able to understand.
Shiing. Shiing Shiing.
Kang Shin-hyuk continued to sharpen and talk to the sword. The sword didn’t respond as if it was out of energy, but he could still feel that the sword was feeling joy.
At this moment, he was convinced that they were communicating from their origins. Then.
-The GodSlayer Sword’s power is restored very slightly by spirit power.
The sword emitted a dazzling light as the message of the Gaia system appeared in his mind. It has recovered its lost origin power very slightly and regained some of its former authority!
-The GodSlayer Sword regains power equal to D-Rank.
-Metallurgy grows to F+ Rank.
-Spirit Power grows to F+ Rank.
-Unlock a portion of the sword’s memories.
“······ Eh?”
Kang Shin-Hyuk, who was sharpened the blade stopped his hands, as a feeling of déjà vu came over him.
The flood of memory again hit Kang Shin-hyuk.
This time it was a memory of another person.
Author’s Notes:
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- The main character this time…from a lot of different meanings I made a teenager the motif. Also, to talk about the overall theme of this work, it would have to be ‘destiny’. If you’re looking for a story about a boy forging his own path while encountering karma from his past life, then this is for you.
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- Some of you might be discussing about a harem from now on, but although many female character will appear, I’m planning to add just as many male characters as well! And just because a female character appears, doesn’t mean she will be a heroine! Maybe about half of them will be, but it’s not decided yet!
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- I can’t talk about the other series…but just to say something, it’s still a long way to go until the other one is finished. I didn’t start a new series because it’s nearing the end!
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- Then I will return at 9:40 tomorrow morning![TL: Not us, the author.]
Translator and Editor Notes:
[1] Although I’m not a master of metallurgy, the Metallurgy mentioned here is more on the blacksmithing side, but bit more than just blacksmithing to be called blacksmithing.
[4] Whetstone need to be wet with water before sharpening for those who didn’t know.
The schedule for now is 3~4/week. It is subject to change especially with the coronavirus going on, so keep that in mind! This is what happened last week, but it was nothing serious. ~Magicfishcat
Damn forgot the author notes in the previous chapters. ~ Magicfishcat
The sourc𝗲 of this content is fre(e)webnovel